Gustav Mann (1836–1916) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

who led expeditions in

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

and was also a gardener at the

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,10 ...

. Born in the

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover () was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Hanover, and j ...

in 1836, he was chosen by

William Jackson Hooker Sir William Jackson Hooker (6 July 178512 August 1865) was an English botany, botanist and botanical illustrator, who became the first director of Kew Gardens, Kew when in 1841 it was recommended to be placed under state ownership as a botan ...

, Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to take part in

William Balfour Baikie William Balfour Baikie (27 August 182512 December 1864) was a Scottish explorer, naturalist and philologist. Biography Baikie was born at Kirkwall, Orkney, eldest son of Captain John Baikie, R.N. He studied medicine at Edinburgh, and, on obta ...

's expedition to West Africa. While there, he sent numerous specimens back to Kew. He married Mary Anne Stovell in 1863. Mann's exploration of the Cameroon mountains is described by Sir Richard Burton in ''Abeokuta and the Camaroon Mountains'' vol. 2 Mann later collected specimens in

Darjeeling Darjeeling (, , ) is a city in the northernmost region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the Koshi Pr ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, before retiring to

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, in 1891. He died in 1916. Some 349 species of plants, the genera '' Manniella'' Hook.f. and ''Manniophyton'' Muell. Arg.; and Mann's Spring on the Cameroon Mountain bear his name.

Publications

Mann, G., H. Wendland, Hooker, Sir J. D. ''On the palms of western tropical Africa''. R. Taylor, 1864, London. Mann, G. ''List of Assam ferns''. C. Wolf & Sohn, 1898?, München Mann, G. "Physiological Histology, Methods and Theory". Clarendon Press, 1902, Oxford For more information:HerbWeb - Gustav Mann Page
at www.kew.org

References

People from the Kingdom of Hanover 19th-century German botanists Botanists active in Kew Gardens Botanists active in Africa 1836 births 1916 deaths Plant collectors {{Germany-botanist-stub